Comcast makes firm £22bn offer for Sky

Comcast, continuing to see the loss of cable subscribers during an otherwise strong first quarter, formalized its bid for Britain's Sky satellite with a $30 billion offer.

Comcast announced its intention to launch a bid for Sky in February, gatecrashing 21st Century Fox's planned £18.5 billion takeover.

The owner of NBC Universal announced terms for a pre-conditional cash offer this morning. Comcast said it would make a legally binding commitment to fund the rolling news channel at at least its current level for a decade.

Britain sticks to plans on EU customs union
If the United Kingdom remains part of the customs union, it would be unable to strike trade deals with countries around the world. It reduces administrative and financial trade barriers, such as customs checks and charges, and boosts economic co-operation.

Investors, who think the bidding war will continue, sent Sky's stock much higher than Comcast's new offer.

Comcast also said it would establish an independent board for Sky News as a bulwark against editorial interference, which has been a major concern for politicians and regulators in the Murdoch pursuit of Sky. Since Comcast announced its proposed bid in February, Sky's shares had been trading at more than 13 pounds, at a premium to the Comcast price, as investors expected a protracted battle for the United Kingdom broadcaster.

And in a bid to head off any competition concerns, the group said it would vow not to acquire any majority stake in any United Kingdom newspapers for five years.

Amazon just announced a new version of the Echo Dot
If you've got an Amazon Prime subscription, you'll enjoy discounted rates of $2.99 and $6.99 per month on top of Prime. Amazon might position the device as a poor man's Echo Show with a leaning more towards video content consumption.

Comcast Corp. posted earnings of $3.12 billion.

"We have long believed Sky is an outstanding company and a great fit with Comcast", Chief Executive Brian Roberts said in a statement.

Sky News has become a flash point in the Fox's bid due to competition fears centring on Mr Murdoch's ownership of The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times newspapers. In a separate statement, Fox said it remains committed to its offer for Sky and is "currently considering its options", with a further announcement in due course. "Sky will be our platform for growth across Europe".

Kanye West Tells Ebro
Kanye West appeared to concur with Owens' belief on victimhood, tweeting Sunday afternoon, "self victimization is a disease". Reportedly West told Ebro that he liked the way Owens thinks because she challenges "conventional black thought".

FAA must act after jet engine explosion
Officials reported that the plane made an emergency landing in Philadelphia following the accident. It is unclear how many of those delays were due to engine inspections.

Everything You Need to Know About Record Store Day
Re-Animated Records in La Mesa will open at 7 a.m. with free food and drinks and a big 20 percent off sale. For Record Store Day , this year's slate of releases features a wide spread of genres, Lambert said.

Milind Soman marries Ankita Konwar in traditional ceremony
The duo tied the knot in an intimate ceremony which was attended by close friends and family members at Alibaug on Sunday morning. This news confirms when his close family members shared a handsome picture of their haldi ceremony on social media.

Armenian premier resigns amid protests
Who is Serzh Sargsyan? Sargsyan's bid to cling to power echoed similar tenure-lengthening maneuvers by the Russian president. Until his release, Pashinyan's whereabouts had been unknown. -April 23: Sargsyan resigns unexpectedly.

EU Probes Apple's Bid To Buy Music App Shazam
In the wake of that announcement, Shazam said it couldn't imagine a "better home" for its platform than Apple. Apple didn't immediately reply to a request for comment about whether it would do any of those things.

Saturday is Drug Take Back Day
Those turning in drugs should cross out any personal information, but labels should be otherwise left intact. Over-the-counter drugs and veterinary drugs will be accepted, but needles and inhalers will not.

Say hello to the iX3, BMW's 'first' electric auto
A new charging control unit allows the battery to be recharged in 30 minutes when hooked up to a station with 150 kW output. But the concept is wearing an all-new kidney grille akin to the one seen on the i Vision Dynamics Concept from a year ago .